On 9/29 I had a full service oil change performed on my 2000 Toyota Camry at the Jiffy Lube located at 922 E. Ogden Ave in Naperville, IL. Over the next two days my brakes gradually lost their braking capacity. I took the car to Lucas Tire at 3501 N. Western Ave in Chicago, IL on 10/2 to assess the problem. They informed me that the brake fluid in the car was seriously contaminated with motor oil. This contamination required the replacement of every rubberized part of my braking system since the motor oil caused those parts to swell and become non-functional.
As soon as the problem was diagnosed I contacted the Jiffy Lube store where the service was performed. They denied any fault in the matter but said they would consult with corporate management to see if they could offer any compensation. I gave them the contact information with Lucas Tire so that they could discuss the necessary repairs and authorize any work. Phone discussions did occur between Lucas Tire and Jiffy Lube but no compensation offer was ever made by Jiffy Lube. After a week of inaction on Jiffy Lube's part I authorized Lucas Tire to make the required repairs because I needed my car back.
Lucas Tire faxed the final repair bill for $892.61 to Jiffy Lube. The store manager at Jiffy Lube who identified himself as Tim Piszczek contacted me on 11/1 and told me that Jiffy Lube would not be making any compensation offers because they "would never make an error of this type" and because they never authorized the repairs that were made.
There is no explanation for the oil contamination other than an error during the Jiffy Lube service. No other service had been performed on the car for the prior six months. Oil contamination causes rapid degradation of rubber parts; it is a matter of days, not months. Lucas Tire collected a sample of the contaminated brake fluid which they provided to me. Jiffy Lube's claim that they didn't have the opportunity to authorize the repairs is ridiculous. They were notified immediately of the problem and had ample time to investigate and make the repair authorization if they had any intention of doing so. I could not simply leave my car at Lucas Tire indefinitely waiting for Jiffy Lube to get around to authorizing the repairs.
In addition to the $892.61 in repair costs, I am seeking reimbursement of the $229.22 that I spent on a car rental from Enterprise during the period that the car was being serviced at Lucas Tire.
After filing a Small Claims suit against Heartland Automotive I was informed by their District Manager that the company had filed for Bankruptcy and was probably immune to being sued. I will continue to pursue this in any way I can. But this should be a warning to anyone thinking about using a Heartland Jiffy Lube franchise, of which there are hundreds, that they can do anything they want to your car with no legal recourse possible on your part. Let the buyer BEWARE.
0 comments